Chapter 23 Writing Style

Words and Their Meanings

Sometimes, writers get stuck trying to find just the right word to convey their meaning. Other times, they use a word because they think they know its meaning and its connotations, but they actually don’t. In either case, it’s important to be sure of a word’s dictionary meaning and its connotations. Often, being sure will require looking up a word in the dictionary.

Words to Avoid in Academic Writing

In addition to choosing words with the appropriate meanings and connotations to convey your message, it’s important to consider the purpose of your writing, the context in which you’re writing, and the audience you’re writing to. All three impact the types of words you choose.

In the context of a gathering of friends or family, it is entirely appropriate to speak and write informally. You might use slang and nonstandard English when you talk with your close friends. You might use acronyms and emojis in emails, text messages, and social media posts.

However, in the context of a university course, you will be writing academically for an audience of instructors and peers. As a result, you’ll need to choose words that convey a serious academic tone, and you’ll need to avoid words that convey an unprofessional tone. In this section, we examine some types of language to avoid.

Commonly Confused Words

Sometimes we accidentally mix up words. Imagine you are writing a grocery list to purchase the ingredients for a guacamole in preparation for a Grey Cup party, but you accidentally write down parsley when the recipe calls for cilantro. Even though parsley and cilantro look remarkably alike, each produces a very different effect in food. This seemingly small error will radically alter the flavour of the guacamole, and your guests might be disappointed.

Likewise, when a writer chooses the wrong word in a sentence, it can make a reader’s experience confusing. Some words in English cause trouble for writers because the words share a similar pronunciation, meaning, or spelling with another word. These are called commonly confused words. For example, read aloud the following sentences containing the commonly confused words new and knew:

• I liked her knew sweater.
• I new she would wear that sweater today.

If you were speaking, no one would catch the error. However, although the two words sound the same when spoken, they have entirely different roles, usages, and meanings. New is an adjective that describes the sweater, and knew is the past tense of the verb to know.

New and knew are just one of many pairs of words that can be confusing because of their similarities. Familiarize yourself with the following list of commonly confused words. Recognizing these words in your own writing and in other pieces of writing can help you choose the correct word to avoid confusing the reader and, ultimately, being incorrect in your writing. Effective writers know not to assume that they already know the meanings of words, and they use resources like this list to improve their ability to choose words effectively.

The English language contains so many words; no one can say for certain how many words exist. In fact, many words in English are borrowed from other languages. Many words have multiple meanings and forms, further expanding the immeasurable number of English words. Although the list of commonly confused words serves as a helpful guide, even these words may have more meanings than shown here. When in doubt, consult an expert: the dictionary!

***

When choosing between commonly confused words, choose the correct word according to its spelling and meaning in the context. Not only does selecting the correct word improve your vocabulary and your writing, but it also helps reduce confusion and improve clarity. It also makes a good impression on your readers. The following strategies can help you avoid misusing confusing words:

Use a dictionary. Keep a dictionary at your desk while you write. Look up words when you are uncertain of their meanings or spellings. Many dictionaries are also available online, and the Internet’s easy access will not slow you down. Check out your cell phone or smartphone to see if a dictionary app is available.

Keep a list of words you commonly confuse. Be aware of the words that often confuse you. When you notice a pattern of confusing words, keep a list nearby, and consult the list as you write. Check the list again before you submit an assignment to your instructor.

Study the list of commonly confused words. You may not yet know which words confuse you, but before you sit down to write, study the words on the list. Prepare your mind for working with words by reviewing the commonly confused words identified in this chapter.

Commonly confused words appear in many locations, not just at work or at school. Be on the lookout for misused words wherever you find yourself throughout the day. Make a mental note of the error and remember its correction for your own pieces of writing.

Most of us have particular pairs of words that we commonly confuse. Perhaps you can’t imagine how someone could mix up there and their, but you commonly use affect and effect incorrectly. The first step to correcting these errors is figuring out what to look for.

Point of View

Point of view, also called perspective or angle of vision, refers to the position from which you view a subject. Point of view is an important consideration in writing, but first, as a starting point, let’s look at a concrete example that illustrates just how important point of view is.

Look at the two illustrations in Figure 23.1. What is your first response? Do you recognize these images?

At first glance, you probably don’t recognize the images, and it may surprise you to learn that these illustrations represent an iconic landmark: the Eiffel Tower.

The images don’t match the mental picture we all have of the Eiffel Tower, which is based on a photo taken from the side view, from several blocks away. However, what if you had never seen the Eiffel Tower before, and the first view you had of it was from directly below it? It would look like the image on the left. What if your first view of the Eiffel Tower was from a hot-air balloon directly above it? It would look like the image on the right.

Now imagine that you must write a description of the Eiffel Tower, but you must base the description on only what you can see from your position—either directly below or directly above. Would your description accurately convey all that the Eiffel Tower is, or would your point of view restrict you?

Next, imagine that someone who has never seen the Eiffel Tower reads your description, which you wrote based only on what you saw from your particular standpoint, in an effort to learn about the famous landmark. From your description, would that reader be able to gain an accurate sense of what the Eiffel Tower actually is? Its size? Its height? Its lines? Its emotional effect? Probably not. The point of view of the writer (you) would impact the reader’s ability to fully understand what the subject—the Eiffel Tower—truly is.

Even when you’re writing about a subject that is not as concrete as the Eiffel Tower is, your point of view will impact how you write, and it will impact how your reader interprets the subject.

On occasion, you will be asked to write an emotionally expressive or sensory piece of writing, similar to a diary entry, in which a subjective point of view is acceptable, even expected. More often, though, your instructors will ask you to write essays that are fact and evidence based and academic in tone. This means you will only be able to show your opinions by the choice of ideas you discuss and how you present your evidence.

Your instructors will expect you to compose relatively emotion-free papers, which means you have to choose your words carefully. When you write a piece full of emotion without facts, the reader is less likely to accept your point. Imagine that you feel very strongly about an issue but do not use facts to support your argument. What if the reader disagrees with you? Since you have not provided factual supporting evidence, the reader will not be convinced of your point of view.

In this section, we explore the impact of emotional writing and the effect on the reader; we will also explore word choices and their possible connotations. Simple changes in word choice will impact the reader, as will the inclusion of lots of personal opinions. For example, look at the two paragraphs below, which reveal two different angles of vision or points of view, and notice your reaction to each.

It is clear that the two authors like or appreciate conditions and experiences differently. In paragraph 1, the writer likes warm weather and does not mind noise, but in paragraph 2, the writer would probably prefer to be at home in air conditioning. Ultimately, the passage that you connect with more is probably based on how you personally feel about going to the beach. Because the passages are based solely on opinion, there is nothing in them to convince the reader that other perspectives or angles of vision are valid or less valid or not valid at all. This is why you need to use facts to back up your ideas when writing.

However, before looking at objective, fact-based writing, practice choosing your words to show differing perspectives. This will also help you see how changing words can completely change the effect of the writing.

This exercise demonstrates that changing your wording even slightly can completely change the impact or effect. It also showed you what it is like to create subjective writing—writing that is writer centred and often based on the writer’s sensory perceptions or emotions.

The reader’s point of view may differ from the writer’s, and since there are no facts to give the reader a solid and believable perspective, the reader could be unconvinced. Now we will look at objective writing, which is based on quantifiable, factual, or scientific observations. First, reread the subjective paragraphs about the beach:

Now read an objective description of the same scene. Notice the writer’s use of quantifiable, measurable data and factual or scientific observations.

In the objective paragraph, the writer presents situations that could be interpreted to be positive or negative, but the language she uses is neutral and without judgment. She also provides enough detail (measurements, temperatures, distances, etc.) to present a more complete description, so the reader can visualize where everyone was situated in the scene, how hot it was, and how high the waves were.

Essentially, the writer presented a complete, unemotional, and objective perspective that is supported by quantifiable evidence. This is the type of writing you’ll be expected to do in your university courses, and choosing words carefully will help you achieve the desired tone.

• • Effective writers strive to add more words to their vocabulary and to use the words they already know more effectively.
• • Choosing precise words with the correct meaning increases the clarity of your message and leaves a positive impression on your readers.
• • Use a dictionary and thesaurus as you write to improve word choice and thus improve the clarity of your writing.
• • Denotations are the dictionary definitions of words.
• • Connotations of words may be positive, neutral, or negative.
• • Nonstandard English, slang, clichés, jargon, and overly general words should be avoided in academic writing.
• • Use gender-neutral language.
• • Although commonly confused words may look alike or sound alike, their meanings are very different, and if a writer chooses the wrong word, the reader may be confused.
• • Keep a list of commonly confused words nearby when you write, or study the chart in this section.
• • Make a list of the particular words that you commonly confuse, and work toward using them correctly.
• • Think carefully about point of view, and choose words that convey an objective, convincing point of view.